Peru's Ministry of Environment and the southern Espinar province set up a dialogue process with the goal of finding solutions to the social and environmental problems locals say mining operations are causing in the area.
In detail, the vice-minister of environment, Elizabeth Silvestre, met with the representatives from 11 farming communities that want to be included among those directly affected by the Coroccohuayco project.
Coroccohuayco is a copper and gold operation managed by Antapaccay, a subsidiary of Glencore (LSE: GLEN). The property is near the company's Tintaya operation and has reserves of 290 million tonnes grading 1.03% copper and the capacity to produce 100,000 tonnes per year.
Local residents worry that, if developed, the mine will pollute their environment - particularly their sources of freshwater, already affected by other mining operations.
Among the 11 communities, five announced that they will launch a strike action on Apr. 20, to push president Pedro Castillo to visit Espinar and tend to their demands.
Despite the possible protest action, the Ministry of Environment has promised to work together with the presidency of the Ministers' Council and with other relevant ministries to properly discuss the issues impacting Espinar and promote the sustainable development of the province.
This is not the first time that the Coroccohuayco project has spurred community strife.
Back in October 2021, Antapaccay announced that it wasn't planning to move forward with the project in the short term because of protests from nearby residents and the blockade of the road used to transport its copper.
At the time, Glencore's subsidiary said in a statement that it supported having a consultation process before deciding to build Coroccohuayco.
"The project is still in the design and viability studies phase, and its development will depend on the results of those analyses," the company said.